SOME people dream of winning at Croke Park but for the finalists in The Irish Field Breeders’ Championship, winning this ‘holy grail’ is as powerful and fervent a wish.

That dream came true for first-time winning owners Bridget Devaney and Richard Drohan, from opposite corners of Ireland: Crossmolina and Rathgormack.

“It’s been amazing, that’s the only word you could use to describe it,” said Des McDonnell who showed the show jumping section champion Emme and her Hardrock Z colt for neighbour Bridget Devaney. He and son Paul qualified the pair at Athlone Show in June.

“This started 10, 15 years ago when we bought a Quattro B mare in England (Zame) and we were producing her. She was going to the Cavan Sales and my brother John rang me and said, ’Don’t sell her, I’ll buy her,’ and he bred Emme.”

Emme, a half-sister to the Numero Cruise stallion SHS Quattro Cruise, was later sold to Bridget. Competed on the national circuit by Des’ son Jonathan and his partner Sonja Ochadlik, she jumped up to 1.40m level before producing a Jardonnay VDL colt two years ago and now this year’s foal.

Hats Off: Des McDonnell celebrates after Bridget Devaney’s Emme wins the show jumping section of The Irish Field Breeders Championship at the 2023 Dublin Horse Show \ Susan Finnerty

“When we came home on Sunday night, there was a bonfire outside the house where family and friends had gathered. Bridget is in England at the moment but when she’s home, we’ll have another party,” said McDonnell.

The winning duo are now turned out in their Crossmolina paddock. “They’re finished for the year. We’re going to keep him on and produce him, although we could have sold him numerous times at Dublin, even during the parade.”

Dermot O’Sullivan came close to matching his 2015 Breeders’ Championship win with Aidensfield Flamenco. This year, he finished reserve with the eye-catching bay mare HHS Cornetta Royale, bred by Marion Hughes. By the Cornet Obolensky-sired HHS Cornet, her filly foal at foot is by the Dominator Z son Querida VG Z.

Both this combination and third-placed Michael Egan’s combination were selected at the final qualifier held at West Clare Show. Egan, from Swinford, was the second Mayo man in the top-three and his mare, Oakfield Sweet Heart, is by Womanizer out of the Guidam mare Oakfield Solitaire. She has a colt foal by the young Comthago Z stallion, DS Shotgun.

Derry Rothwell’s Greenhall Catwalk (Mermus R) has been a model of consistency in this championship and she and her latest Dignified van’t Zorgvliet filly placed fourth this year. Taking fifth place was one of John Roche’s fleet of Coroner mares: Assagart Faithful and her Carrabis Z filly.

Up the Deise

Immediately after the slickly-ran off show jumping section was the eventing section, again judged in traditional Dublin fashion by French vet Yves Gay and Andrew Spalding.

There will be only one venue for a celebration when the winner’s cup arrives in Rathgormack and that’s The Village pub. On the verge of closure, it was bought by local shareholders, including Richard Drohan, the winning owner.

“I’m still floating on air. I’ve been a long time trying to win this one and I thought it was a great headline in the Field last Saturday about Mayo and Deise winning because those two counties don’t win a lot otherwise in Croke Park! I said to Des [McDonnell] that after my own county Waterford, I’d always be hoping that Mayo will win the football final,” said the elated dairy farmer.

His Golden Moments and her sold News Anchor colt foal, won the eventing section after qualifying at Charleville Show.

Bred in Bridgetown, Co Wexford, by Mosie White, Drohan’s grey Golden Master mare is out of Coragh Pride, a Pointilliste half-sister to Anthony and Peggy Gordon’s good show winner I’m Irish. White still has two full-sisters to Golden Moments: a four-year-old and filly foal.

Her Don Tristan grand-dam tops up her thoroughbred percentage to 92.97% and Golden Moments was covered this year by Island Commander, another thoroughbred stable companion of News Anchor at Michael Murphy’s Clohamon Stud.

Drohan’s best result in previous Breeders’ Championships was a fourth place with Lucy’s Princess and two of his daughters Lucy and Laura, who showed the foal, were on hand to celebrate in the ring.

Yvonne Pearson’s Kief Queen B has brought her Newtownards owner much success at Dublin, including a Coote Cup win and has now added a Breeders Championship reserve place to her show ring record.

Bred by Kieran Fahey, another proud breeder watching from the ringside, she is by Munther and out of Fahey’s prolific winner Madame Noir while her filly foal Temperance is by Rosier.

Paula Howard had a vested interest in both her since-sold 2016 champion Slatequarry Sasha, shown last Friday by the Burchill family, and her own Dernahatten Out Of Touch. This Bienamado mare and Timpany Tiger Two, her Tiger Attack colt, placed third and both she and Kief Queen B qualified at Armagh County.

In fourth was Paddy and Richard Gildea’s Miss Cranny Lancelot (Lancelot) and Lewis, the second of two Rosier foals in the top-five and fifth went to Mary Rothwell’s JVK Lady Marmalade (Brilliant Lad) with a filly by the family’s own Crosstown Dancer stallion Greenhall at foot.

Judge’s Verdict

Hedgeholme Stud’s Andrew Spalding was impressed with their finalists, saying: “Yves and I both thought that the standard of entries was very high. We were looking for an athletic mare with a foal whose movement was coming well off the ground especially for the show jumping section.

“Our winner in that section caught both our eyes the moment she entered the ring she just flowed along, as did her foal. It looked as though she had all the attributes for a horse that could perform and it was a mare and foal partnership that I would be proud to have in my paddock.”

“In the eventing final, it was a little bit harder, as there were several mares that looked as though they carried a fair amount of blood, and once again the foal out of the winning mare was a good looking foal that moved well and both were very correct.

“In the class we promoted a couple of mares that had exceptional foals above some very good mares whose foals were maybe not presented as well as they might have been.

“Perhaps producers need to make sure that their foals can be presented so that the mare handler is not having to hold back the mare,” he advised.

“Overall, it was an absolute privilege for Yves and I to be invited to judge 16 mares and foals of such a high quality. Let’s hope that in years to come those who competed in the Breeders’ Championship go on to be champions.”